Our Team
Board Members
Dr. Onye Nnorom
Past President
Dr. Onye Nnorom is a Family Doctor and a Public Health & Preventive Medicine specialist. She is the Associate Program Director of the Public Health; Preventive Medicine Residency Program at the University of Toronto, and is the Black Health Theme Lead and Post-Graduate Medical Education for the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto. As the Black Health Theme Lead, she is tasked with developing educational content for teaching medical students about Black Canadian health, and inequities due to systemic racism. She is also a clinical consultant for the Nicotine Dependence Clinic at Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.
She is the Past President of the Black Physicians’ Association of Ontario. She was also the chronic disease prevention lead at TAIBU Community Health Centre, where she led a number of successful cancer screening initiatives. Most recently she has taken the role as the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Lead, within the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Toronto. And she is the host of a podcast called Race, Health and Happiness where she interviews successful Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color, providing wisdom on how to stay well in a “racialized world”.
Dr. Nnorom completed her medical degree at McGill University and then completed a Masters of Public Health (Epidemiology) and residency training at the University of Toronto. Being of Nigerian and Trinidadian heritage, she is particularly interested in Black community health and wellness, and racism as a social determinant of health.
Dr. Andrew Thomas
PRESIDENT
Dr. Andrew Thomas is a Family Physician who works in Durham Region. He is originally from Whitby, Ontario. He attended Howard University for medical school. Participating in mentorship and training opportunities through the BPAO motivated him to return to Canada to practice medicine. He served as a co-lead for the Black Health Vaccine Initiative (BHVI) clinic in Durham, a co-lead for the SMART initiative, and is the chair of the BPAO board.
Dr. Shambe Mutungi
Secretary
Dr. Shambe Mutungi is an Obstetrician-Gynecologist, practicing in the Durham region. She was born in Uganda and at a young age immigrated to Toronto with her family. She has a very strong interest in Global Health and underserved populations. During her residency training at the University of Toronto, she completed a 2-year Certificate in Global Health Education. She also participated in women’s health overseas with a special interest in pelvic floor dysfunction and obstetrical fistulas.
Shambe is passionate about decreasing the disparities in health within Black and immigrant populations as well as working from an educational standpoint to increase the number of Black applicants in medicine with a focus on obstetrics and gynecology. She is a 2023 Candidate for an MSc at IHPME in Business Health Administration.
Evol Williams
Treasurer
Mr. Evol Williams is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), and holds Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and Canadian Investment Manager (CIM) designations. Evol has an interest in Black community outreach and intends to use his area of expertise to advance the work of the BPAO.
Dr. Tola Overduin
Director of Membership
Dr. Tola Overduin is a plastic and reconstructive surgeon. Her practice focuses on hand conditions and skin cancer.
Dr. Overduin completed medical school at the University of Toronto and residency at Dalhousie University. She also completed a fellowship in hand surgery at the University of Toronto. Prior to entering medicine, she completed an M.A. in English Language and Literature. Dr. Overduin is Nigerian- Canadian and has an interest in improving immigrant health and outcomes.
Dr. Husam Abdel-Nadir
Dir. Continuing Professional Development
Husam Abdel-Qadir is a cardiologist at Women’s College Hospital and the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre, University Health Network. He graduated from the University of Toronto’s medical school with the Silver Medal and completed residencies in Internal Medicine and Cardiology at the University of Toronto, followed by a PhD in Clinical Epidemiology and Health Care Research at the Institute for Health Policy, Management, and Evaluation. His primary clinical and research focus is the cardiovascular health of people with cancer, particularly breast cancer.
This research is supported by an early career Chair in Heart and Brain Health and a National New Investigator Award from the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. He also leads a research program on the management and outcomes of people with atrial fibrillation. His work has been recognized by the Canadian Cardiovascular Society Young Investigator Award and Atrial Fibrillation Research Award, European Society of Cardiology Young Investigator Award, and the Polanyi prize in Medicine/ Physiology. Dr. Abdel-Qadir is also a member of the Advisory Board to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario.
Dr. Neil Isaac
Member at Large
Dr Neil Isaac is a practicing Radiologist at North York General Hospital. After completing an honors Bachelor of Science at the University of Toronto, he went to Dalhousie University for Medical School as well as residency in Radiology. He completed a Fellowship in Cardiovascular Imaging from the University of Pennsylvania.
Dr. Chiebere Ogbuneke
Member at Large
Dr. Chiebere O. Ogbuneke is a Family Physician. He completed his medical degree at Nizhny Novgorod State Medical Academy, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia. Dr. Chiebere worked in Africa for a few years before moving to the UK for a Master’s degree in Public Health at Bournemouth University, United Kingdom.
Dr. Ogbuneke is the International Medical Graduate (IMG) Coordinator for the Northern Ontario School of Medicine’s nine residency program. He is also a Co-founder and CEO of MyTeleMD, a Telemedicine company that provides a platform for physicians to provide medical care virtually. Dr. Ogbuneke’s main interests are on vaccine preventable diseases, vaccine safety and Virtual Health/ Telemedicine.
Dr. Mojola Omole
Member at Large
Dr. Mojola Omole is a breast surgical oncologist and a general surgeon. She completed a residency in general surgery and fellowships in international surgery and breast surgical oncology. Since graduating, she has been locuming throughout Ontario as a general surgeon and a breast surgeon.
Dr. Ewurabena Simpson
Member at Large
Dr. Ewurabena Simpson received her medical degree from McGill University and completed both her general pediatrics training and hematology/oncology fellowship at the Hospital for Sick Children and the University of Toronto.
She practices as a hematologist/oncologist at CHEO, where she leads the sickle cell disease clinical program. Dr. Simpson is the treasurer for the Canadian Haemoglobinopathy Association and currently serves as Assistant Dean for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion for the University of Ottawa Faculty of Medicine.
Raquiya Austin
Member at Large
Raquiya Austin serves as in-house legal counsel to Ornge, a provincially funded not-for-profit organization which provides high quality air ambulance services and medical transport to people who are critically ill or injured. Raquiya is passionate about understanding EDI and how EDI plays a role in our community. She previously served as the inaugural EDI Co-Chairs within Ornge. Before entering the legal profession, Raquiya obtained her Juris Doctor from the University of New Brunswick’s Faculty of Law. She was called to the Ontario Bar in 2016. Raquiya also holds an Honours BA in English Literature from York University.
Raquiya is an avid community activist, having held several Board appointments with varying organizations across the GTA.
Dr. Michelle Quaye
BRPO President
Michelle is a newly minted family doctor completing her specialty training in Public Health and Preventive Medicine at Queen’s University. She served as Queen’s Liaison for BRPO prior to taking on the role of president. She previously completed her MD and BMSc at Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University. Her interests within public health include child health and health equity. In her spare time, she enjoys trying out new recipes, and travelling to new places.
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